Break Out the Brooms

Not all 6-2 games are created equal. By score, it seems like an easy win. This one was anything but a walk in the park to complete a four-game sweep of the A’s, but it also never felt like there was any real danger that the Royals might lose this game. If you told me the Royals would only get four innings from their starter and would correspondingly need five innings from the bullpen, I’d have assumed they missed out on the chance to sweep. Of course, if you told me the A’s also only got four from their starter and, thus, needed at least four innings from their bullpen, I’d have felt pretty good about the Royals’ chances in a high-scoring game.

And yet, it was 6-2. I’m not sure you'd consider what Randy Dobnak did good, but he was effective in the four innings he pitched. Carlos Duran did the thing that makes him a risky reliever. But he was picked up really nicely by four other Royals relievers to finish the job. Meanwhile, the A’s quieted things down as well once it got to their bullpen, but by then, it was too late. The two worst bullpens in baseball restoring some order to a weird game is proof that you really can’t predict baseball. But it worked out for the Royals, who have now won five in a row and six of seven against the two teams in the American League worse than them.

The offense gave Dobnak breathing room, but what a weird start.